The present disclosure broadly relates to the art of printing systems and, more particularly, to a method of configuring a printing system using a document key and a printing system configurable using the same.
The terms “print”, “printing” and “marking” as used herein are to be broadly interpreted to encompass any action or process involving the production or output of sheet media having text, images, graphics and/or other indicia formed thereon by any process, such as inkjet or electrophotographic processes, for example. The terms “printer” and “printing system” as used here are to be broadly interpreted to encompass any device, apparatus or system that is capable of performing a “printing” action. Examples of such equipment and/or systems include, without limitation, desktop printers, network printers, stand-alone copiers, multi-function printer/copier/facsimile devices, and high-speed printing/publishing systems. Additionally, such exemplary embodiments of equipment, systems and/or processes can utilize sheet media of any suitable type, kind, material, quality or thickness (e.g., recycled paper, plain paper, bond paper, coated paper, card stock, transparencies and/or other media), for example. Furthermore, such exemplary equipment, systems and/or processes can output indicia on such sheet media using any printing or marking substance, such as liquid ink, solid ink, toner and/or colorant, for example, in monochrome (e.g., black) or one or more colors, or any combination thereof.
Additionally, the subject matter of the present disclosure is particularly well suited for use on and in association with multiple-function printing systems and will be discussed herein with particular reference thereto. However, the subject matter of the present disclosure is capable of broad use in a wide variety of applications and environments. As such, it is to be distinctly understood that the showings and discussion herein are merely exemplary and are not intended to be limiting.
A variety of devices and/or procedures is known and has been used to provide access to configuration settings of printing systems. For example, configurable hardware components, such as single in-line package (SIP) switches, duel in-line package (DIP) switches, pins/jumpers, and rotary switches, can be included on hardware components of printing systems, such as circuit boards and other such devices, and these hardware components can be selectively manipulated to configure the printing system in the desired manner. One difficulty with such arrangements, however, is the reduced efficiency associated with manually manipulating these components both during manufacturing as well as during field service and feature upgrades. Another difficulty with using configurable hardware components is the minimal ability of the manufacturers to limit access to these components and the operational and/or performance parameters associated therewith.
In addition to using configurable hardware components, or as an alternative thereto, software control and/or configuration settings are also known and used. These software settings can normally be accessed by a repair or service technician using suitable hardware or software. Often, these configuration and/or control settings are also accessible though a user interface provided on the printing system, such as a touch screen or a display and keypad, for example. The use of such software control and/or configuration settings provides numerous benefits and advantages over the use of configurable hardware components. For example, costs associated with the hardware components and the physical assembly thereof may be reduced. Furthermore, costs associated with the manipulation of these components during the process of configuring the printing systems are minimized or possibly eliminated.
As indicated above, one difficulty that is associated with the use of configurable hardware components is that untrained or unauthorized personnel can access the components and incorrectly set or configure the system and/or components thereof. Unfortunately, similar circumstances exist with the use of software control and/or configuration settings. As such, printing systems have been developed in which at least a portion of the software configuration settings are password accessible.
However, certain challenges exist with the use of password protected configuration settings. One such difficulty is maintaining the secrecy of a password in an environment in which the password must be disclosed to numerous parties, such as service and repair technicians and trained operators, during the course of normal operation. In such situations, the password may be inadvertently disclosed or revealed without authorization to an untrained person. As a result, considerable difficulty is often encountered in attempting to prevent unauthorized access to control and/or configuration settings using password protection.
As one alternative to using password protection, or for use in conjunction therewith, printing systems are often equipped with a communication system connectible to a telephone network or data communication network (e.g., an intranet or internet). The printing system is then operative to communicate with a suitable system, network or database to obtain authorization for changes to the configuration of the printing system or to communicate such changes in an appropriate manner. However, the inclusion of such a communication system undesirably increases the cost of the printing system and also increases the complexity of the control system thereof. Additionally, not all environments in which such a printing system might be used will include a suitable telephone or data communication network.
As another alternative to using password protection, or for use in conjunction therewith, hardware devices of various types and kinds have been developed that can be used instead of, or in addition to, password accessible control and/or configuration settings. However, considerable cost and complexity is normally associated with the use of hardware keys. As such, the use of a hardware key is often not a cost effective solution due to the additional cost of the components and the increased complexity of the control system.
Accordingly, it is believed desirable to provide a printing system and method that overcomes these and other problems and disadvantages.